Senate bans trans fat in restaurants

Texans could still enjoy their chicken-fried steak, but only if a restaurant cooks with an oil that does not contain trans fat, under a bill passed today by the Senate.

SB 204 by Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, would give larger restaurant chains until Sept. 1, 2010 to comply. Chains with fewer than 15 restaurants would have an extra year.

The bill goes to the House where a similar bill has already been passed by a committee.

Many major fast-food chains and donut shops already have stopped using trans fat, Shapleigh said. The states of New York and California have banned the substance, developed during World War II by adding hydrogen to extend the life of cooking oils.